Exercising device



Dec. 22, 1931. J CQLE 1,837,531

EXERCISING DEVICE Filed May 21, 1929 Patented Dec. 22, 1931 UNITED STATES JAMES D. COLE, OF CLEVELAND HEIGHTS, OHIO, ASSIGN OR T0 Til-IE DOMESTIC ELECTRIC I PATENT oF icE.

COMPANY, or CLEVELAND, onro, A ,conronnrion or onro nxnncrsnvcr DEVICE Application filed May 21, 1929. Serial No. 364,785.

The general object of this invention is to provide an improved and simplified exercising and massaging device or apparatus of the type shown, for example, in my prior application, Serial No. 315,858, filed October 29, 1928.

Exercising and massaging machines for with his two hands, and is exercised by ofi'er-.

ing resistance to the operation of the machine.

An object of the present invention is to provide a machine wherein both types of treatment may be given interchangeably without loss of time in having to effect tedious adjustments. A further object is to provide an exercising and massaging device which will enable both types of treatment above mentioned to be effected at reduced installation cost.

A specific object is to provide an applicator for use with an exercising and/ or massaging machine which shall be so arranged that the user may massage while exercising various parts of his body, using the applicator as a belt and, without adjustment of the machine, vigorously exercise his arms and shoulders.

The invention, as illustrated, comprises a flexible exercising and massaging belt of suitable length provided with means for connection to the vibrating elementsof an exer-,

cising machine, the belt having incorporated therewith a pair of flexible hand holdmembers adapted to be gripped by the hands of the user. The hand hold members are illustrated as loops preferably formedby strips of web material similar to, but narrower than that of the belt, the ends of such narrow strips being attached, as by stitching, to the flat sides of the belt. 1

The various advantages of the invention will become apparent from the following description relatingto the accompanying drawings showing the preferred form. The essential novel characteristics are I summarized in the claim.. 7

Referring briefly to the drawings, F ig. 1 shows a side elevation of. a suitable exercising machine and applicator device embodying my invention; Fig. 3 is a'plan view of the applicator, and Fig. 2 is a fragmentary side elevation-showing more in detail the preferred construction of one of the hand grip elements. V V The drawings show in Fig. 1, an exercise ing machine, the belt vibrating or reciprocating elements of which are crank pins oppositely disposed with reference to the crank axis, so. as to alternately pull on the ends of the belt, designatedl; Itis to be understood that themachine shown is by way of example, and further, thatthe applicator apparatus may be modified to operate in connec- .tion with any machine, the operation of which is essentially similar. I

The exercising machineillustrated coma prises an electric motor M provided with an energizing switch S, a casing C for suitable gearing, ,anda shaft D driven by the gearing. The shaft D carries a pair of discs B, one onlybeing shown, both of which have crank pinsP with suitable heads, which pins may be adjusted with reference to the discs so as to vary the 'efiective length of the crank .arms to thereby adjustthe length of the belt vibrations. A suitable support for the motor and associated me'chanism'may comprise an underhanging bracket B on the motor frame, adapted to 'be attached to a suitable support, a door in a building for example.

The belt 1 may comprise a suitable length of cloth webbing, and has at its ends rein- .forced eyelets 2, preferably leather overlays which are provided with keyhole slots. 3

adapted to he slipped over the respective heads of the. crank pins P. Inits ordinary use, the belt is simply placed in contact with pullson the of the belt, 'due to the op,-

whatever part of the body it is desired to massage or exercise and the rap d alternate 1 pose to embodyvhand grip loops 5 inthe'belt construction in such manner that theseloops may be used when desired without having to i remove the belt from the machine and without in any way interfering with the" ordi.-;

nary use of the belt, as above discussed. As

shown, the hand grip members 5 comprise simply closed loopsof webbing material simc ilar to .that'of the belt and about half the width thereof, theends 5a of'the strip'scomprising the loops being simply stitched onto the webbing of the belt, as at 6,'thetwo ends lying in vertical alignment i. e. in a common lying substantially entirely within the side boundary of the main strip, said attaching loops extending in the direction toward the U-bend of the main strip, whereby the narrower loops form hand grips.

Intestimony whereof, I- hereunto'aflix my signature;

JAMES D. COLE.

plane parallel to the widersurface of the belt. Y

Asa matter of course, suitable means may be provided for adjusting the length ofthe belt portion'between the hand grip element 5, so that the two forms ofexercis'e above discussed, may be carried out simultaneously by difierent sized persons. There are many hence Q common types of adj ustment for belts, this needs'no illustration. In the preferred construction there is no adjustment.

It will be seen from the above description that whenever the user wishes Co-discontinue theexercise and massage of his bodyby means of the belt'l, he does not have to remove the belt before taking the arm and shoulder exc ercise, but simply allows the'portion of the belt intermediate the loops 5 to depend idly, while he grasps the two-loops, as, suggested iuFig. 1.

'Itwill be further seen that the arrangement is exteremely simple and cheap to manufacture; that it takes up practicallyno more space than does the ordinary belt without a provision for hand grips that it does not interfere with packing and shipping by im-' pairing the flexibility of the belt, and that it does away with the necessity for modifying the machine to provide special hand grips v thereon.

vI'claimr A belt for an exercising machine of the class described, comprising a main flexible strip,-means for attaching the ends thereof to the vibrating elements of an exercising machine with the strip extending in a U- course, and a plurality of narrower flexible iU-shaped loops permanently attached at their end portions to the outer sides of the main flatwise side by side in a common plane and strips in regions between the attaching ends I p of 'themain strip and the U-ben d thereof, the ends otsaid narrower'strips being secured isa 

